UNHCR: Audit Certificates

Lord Avebury: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What information they have received from the United Nations High Commission on Refugees on the proportion of the projects conducted through implementing partners for which audit reports were not received in 1997 and 1998 respectively; how many of the implementing partners whose projects were not audited were through non-governmental organisations whose formation the United Nations High Commission on Refugees had encouraged; and what proportion the unaudited projects represented of the total value of projects carried out through implementing partners.

Baroness Amos: UNHCR is independently audited each year. Its most recent audit report was issued in August 1999. According to this report, UNHCR did not receive audit certificates for 30 per cent of expenditure by implementing partners in 1997. In 1998 the percentage was roughly the same, at under 32 per cent. UNHCR's audit report does not state how many projects these figures represent.
	As UNHCR does not keep data on how many non-government organisations (NGOs) it has encouraged to form, we cannot respond on how many such NGOs have carried out projects for which UNHCR has not received audit certificates.

Belfast-Larne Railway

Lord Laird: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Further to the Written Answer by the Baroness Farrington of Ribbleton on 19 April (WA 110) regarding the Belfast to Larne railway line, why there have been no applications for European Union funding for the line since its classification as a Euro-route in 1994; and whether they will list other benefits which have accrued to the line as a result of being so designated.

Baroness Farrington of Ribbleton: The Northern Ireland Transport Holding Company has not submitted an application for EU funding.
	Translink has advised that no other benefits have accrued to the line as a result of being part of atrans-European rail network, largely because other parts of the network have been accorded greater priority in terms of funding.

Ulsterbus Fleet

Lord Laird: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Further to the Written Answer by the Baroness Farrington of Ribbleton on 19 April (WA 110) concerning their policy about the average age of bus fleets, why this safety policy applies only to England, Scotland and Wales and not to Northern Ireland.

Baroness Farrington of Ribbleton: The policy of a target average bus fleet age of eight years is not, primarily, a safety policy but one directed at improving the accessibility of the fleet to disabled persons and others, and does not apply to the devolved administrations. At the time of the Deputy Prime Minister's announcement, devolution in Northern Ireland was imminent. Such policies would therefore have fallen to the Assembly to consider.

Kenneth Noye

Lord Hoyle: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What enquiries are being made into the allegations that Kenneth Noye was shielded by senior police officers because he was a member of a masonic lodge.

Lord Bassam of Brighton: Neither Kent Constabulary nor the Metropolitan Police have received any such allegation, and are not therefore currently conducting any enquiries.

Bestiality

Lord Monson: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How many men were convicted of bestiality in England and Wales in each of the last 10 years for which statistics are available; of these, how many were (a) imprisoned, (b) fined, and (c) put on probation or otherwise dealt with; and what was the longest sentence of imprisonment.

Lord Bassam of Brighton: Available information from 1996 to 1998 is given in the table. Prior to 1996, data for buggery offences involving animals were included with buggery offences involving boys aged under 16 and female victims and therefore cannot be separately identified.
	
		Number of males convicted at the Crown Court for offences of buggery or attempted buggery with an animal(1) by result, England and Wales, 1996-1998
		
			 Year Total convicted Fine Probation order Com- munity service order Combin- ation order Im- mediate custody Average sentence length (yrs) Longest sentence given (yrs) 
			 1996 4 -- 2 2 -- -- -- -- 
			 1997 1 -- 1 -- -- -- -- -- 
			 1998 6 -- 1 -- 2 3 3.1 5 
		
	
	(1) S12 of the Sexual Offences Act 1956 as amended by s143 & s144 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994.

State Schools and Freedom of Information Legislation

Lord Lucas: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether all state schools will be subject to the Freedom of Information Act; and, if so, under which wording in the present Bill.

Lord Bassam of Brighton: Maintained schools and other educational institutions are designated as public authorities in Part IV to Schedule 1 to the Freedom of Information Bill.
	For England and Wales, the designation in paragraph 52 of the schedule: "a community, foundation or voluntary school or a community or foundation special school within the meaning of the Schools Standards and Framework Act 1998" brings within the scope of the Bill institutions that are commonly referred to by the general public as "state schools" (although that term has no meaning in law).
	These institutions are maintained schools, and they, along with other maintained schools in England and Wales, i.e. maintained nursery schools (as designated at paragraph 53 of the schedule), and pupil referral units as defined by Section 19(2) of the Education Act 1996 (designated at paragraph 54), are public authorities within the meaning of the Bill.
	For Northern Ireland, paragraphs 61 and 62 of the schedule designate all categories of schools (except "independent" schools) as public authorities for the purposes of the Bill. The designation in paragraph 61 includes "controlled" schools within the meaning of Article 2(2) of the Education and Libraries (Northern Ireland) Order 1986, and it brings within the scope of the Bill institutions thought of as "state" schools in Northern Ireland, although, as in England and Wales, the expression has no meaning in law.

Committee on Standards in Public Life and Freedom of Information Legislation

Lord Campbell of Alloway: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How the Freedom of Information Bill will apply to the internal papers of the Committee on Standards in Public Life; and, if all evidence submitted to its study on standards of conduct in the House of Lords will be published.

Lord Bassam of Brighton: The Committee on Standards in Public Life will be covered by the Freedom of Information Bill. The right of access will apply to all information held by the committee, subject to the conditions and exemptions set out in the Bill. Exemptions that may be relevant to the work of the committee include:
	the exemption relating to personal information whose disclosure would contravene the data protection principles set out in the Data Protection Act 1998 (clause 38 of the Freedom of Information Bill); and
	the exemption relating to information provided in confidence (clause 39). All requests under the Freedom of Information Bill will, however, be assessed on a case by case basis.
	The Freedom of Information Bill also requires authorities to adopt a scheme for publication which must be approved by the Information Commissioner (Clause 17). Such schemes detail the sort of information the body will publish proactively.
	The Committee on Standards in Public Life, in accordance with its usual practice, will publish all evidence submitted to the committee in relation to its current enquiry into the House of Lords except information which has been supplied in confidence or which is considered to be defamatory. The evidence will be published at the same time as the committee's report on the House of Lords later this year.

Visa Correspondence Unit: Backlog

Lord Hardy of Wath: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What progress has been made in reducing the backlog of correspondence in the visa correspondence unit.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: I am pleased to inform the House that the Visa Correspondence Unit's backlog of correspondence with Members of Parliament has been reduced so that there are now only 45 letters from Members which have not been answered within the 15 working day target, compared to 851 on 27 January. Forty-five is, of course, still too many and we will continue to work to improve our performance.

Iraq: Demining Equipment Export Licence

Lord Gregson: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether any goods on the United Kingdom military list have recently been approved for export to Iraq.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: Following consultation with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Ministry of Defence, the Department of Trade and Industry recently approved a licence to export demining equipment to Iraq for use by UN personnel in a humanitarian demining programme. The export of the equipment was approved by the UN Sanctions Committee under the Oil for Food programme.

Macau: Strategic Export Control

Lord Hughes of Woodside: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What strategic export controls the United Kingdom will apply to the Macau Special Administrative Region.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: Following the return of Macau to Chinese sovereignty, we have reviewed our policy on the control of strategic exports to the Macau Special Administrative Region (MSAR).
	We shall consider applications for licensing strategic exports to the MSAR on a case by case basis. We will not, however, issue licences for strategic exports to the MSAR for goods which we do not license for export to mainland China. Our policy on strategic exports to mainland China is as set out by my late right honourable friend Derek Fatchett on 3 June 1998, Official Report, cols. 246-7.
	The Department of Trade and Industry will be removing Macau as a destination for Open General Licences which allow the export of Military List goods. Transhipment of goods on the Military List to the MSAR via the United Kingdom without a licence will also be prohibited. Schedule 3 to the Export of Goods (Control) Order (1994) will be amended accordingly.
	Her Majesty's Government's policy on strategic exports to Hong Kong remains as announced by my late right honourable friend on 14 January 1998, Official Report, cols. 220-1.

Vaccines and Injectable Medicines: Bovine Material

Lord Lucas: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Which vaccines or other injectable medical products in use in the United Kingdom contain bovine serum derivatives from (a) United Kingdom sources or (b) abroad; and, if none (in either case), when was the last known date that such products were in use in the United Kingdom.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: No vaccines or other injectable medicines in use in the United Kingdom contain bovine serum derivatives as ingredients in the finished products.
	Some vaccines use bovine material such as foetal calf serum and bovine albumin as nutrients to promote the growth of microbial organisms in culture media. Some injectable medicines use bovine serum derivatives in the manufacturing process. Subsequent purification is designed to remove all materials from such vaccines and injectable medicines that are associated with the manufacture but not required in the finished product. Manufacturers are required to provide validation of these processes to the Medicines Control Agency (MCA).
	In 1989, the Southwood Committee considered the potential for the transmission of bovine spongiform encephalopathy between cattle and other species, including man, through the use of medicinal products and concluded that the risk was remote. The Committee on Safety of Medicines (CSM) accepted this advice but as a precautionary measure issued guidelines to the pharmaceutical industry in March 1989 that gave advice on sourcing of bovine material used in the manufacture of pharmaceuticals. After these guidelines were issued, all pharmaceutical companies were obliged to source bovine material from outside the UK.
	Vaccines that use bovine material in the manufacturing process manufactured since March 1989 have used bovine material from non-UK sources. The MCA has established that the latest date that vaccines manufactured before the guidelines came into force could have been used was November 1993.
	The guidelines on sourcing and processing issued by the Committee on Safety of Medicines also applied to injectable medicines. All manufacturers of injectable medicines which used bovine material in manufacture changed to non-UK sourced materials after the guidelines were issued in March 1989. The MCA does not hold precise dates on which manufacturers of injectable medicines which may have used UK bovine material switched to sourcing such material from outside the UK. However, the MCA's records show that all manufacturers had changed their sourcing practices away from the UK in July 1992.

Gulf War Veterans: Questionnaires to GPs

The Countess of Mar: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Upon what legal authority the Ministry of Defence issues health questionnaires to the general practitioners of former members of HM Armed Forces, former Army Reservists and former members of the Territorial Army who served in Operation Granby without the consent of the individual concerned; how many questionnaires have been distributed, and over what period; what is the response rate; what fees are paid to GPs who complete and return the questionnaires; and for what purpose and by whom they are used.

Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean: The Ministry of Defence does not issue such questionnaires. There are contacts with general practitioners when they refer individual Gulf veterans to our Medical Assessment Programme, but not of the kind suggested.
	If the noble Countess could send me the relevant document I would be pleased to consider the matter further.

Grammar School Ballots and Petitions: Expenditure

Baroness Blatch: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Further to the Written Answer by Lord Falconer of Thoroton on 18 April (WA 97-98), whether they will provide a breakdown of the £14,600 and £185,755 expenditure on grammar school ballots and petitions.

Baroness Blackstone: Payment to Electoral Reform Services is in respect of a range of activities including: advising petition organisers of procedural issues; calculating petition thresholds (including grant payments to schools who provide requested information); validating petitions; printing and mailing ballot papers; and counting votes cast in ballots.

Tourism Forum Meeting, 18 April

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether they will publish a report of the discussions held at the Tourism Forum on 18 April.

Lord McIntosh of Haringey: There will be no written report. The forum is managed by the English Tourism Council. Its role is to contribute, both at meetings and subsequently, to the development of the council's policy on key issues affecting the industry.

National Debt

Lord Ahmed: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What are the current figures and what have the figures been over the last 30 years for:
	(a) the National Debt; and
	(b) the annual interest payments on the National Debt.

Lord McIntosh of Haringey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Director of the Office for National Statistics, who has been asked to reply. Letter to Lord Ahmed from the Economics Statistics Director of the Office for National Statistics, Mr John Kidgell, dated 4 May 2000.
	The Director of the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has been asked to reply to your recent question on National Debt. I am replying in the Director's absence.
	For current figures on the National Debt, I refer you to table 14.2 of Part 1 of the 1999 edition of the Bank of England's Statistical Abstract for the annual figures for 1975 to 1999 and to table 13.2 of Part 1 of the 1998 edition of the Bank of England's Statistical Abstract for the annual figures for 1970 to 1975. These publications are available in the House of Lords Library.
	The figures for annual interest payments on the National Debt are not calculated or published.

Mortgage Lending

Lord Ahmed: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What are the current figures and what have the figures been over the last 30 years for total mortgages outstanding to lending institutions.

Lord McIntosh of Haringey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Director of the Office for National Statistics, who has been asked to reply. Letter to Lord Ahmed from the Economics Statistics Director of the Office for National Statistics, Mr John Kidgell, dated 4 May 2000.
	The Director of the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has been asked to reply to your recent question on outstanding mortgages. I am replying in the Director's absence.
	Total mortgage lending by United Kingdom institutions at the end of each quarter is published by the Office for National Statistics in Economic Trends (currently in table 6.6) and Financial Statistics (currently in table 3.2C). The series identifier is AMWT.
	The entire run of the series, which extends back to 1962, may be viewed on the ONS central statistical database, to which the house of Lords Library has access.

Money Supply

Lord Ahmed: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What are the current figures and what have the figures been over the last 30 years for:
	(a) M4 (total money supply); and
	(b) M0 (cash or coin).

Lord McIntosh of Haringey: This information is published in Tables 3.1C and 3.1D of the ONS publication Financial Statistics. The requested data are attached.
	
		Current figures (seasonally adjusted)
		
			  Notes & Coins in circulation outside Bank of England (BOE): level £m M0 wide monetary base (end period): level £m Money stock M4 (end period): level £m 
			 March 2000 30,318 30,469 825,392 
			 April 2000 30,418 30,647 not yet available 
		
	
	
		Figures over the last 30 years (seasonally adjusted)
		
			  Notes & coins in circulation outside Bank of England (BOE): level £m M0 wide monetary base (end period): level £m Money stock M4 (end period): level £m 
			 1970 3,796 4,097 26,643 
			 1971 4,095 4,289 30,976 
			 1972 4,361 4,845 38,156 
			 1973 4,865 5,339 46,544 
			 1974 5,431 6,157 51,671 
			 1975 6,224 6,872 57,943 
			 1976 6,997 7,648 64,538 
			 1977 7,760 8,651 74,074 
			 1978 8,917 9,836 85,090 
			 1979 10,071 11,013 97,339 
			 1980 10,885 11,649 114,149 
			 1981 11,475 11,925 137,837 
			 1982 11,841 12,302 154,865 
			 1983 12,571 13,038 175,385 
			 1984 13,247 13,746 199,158 
			 1985 13,893 14,266 225,144 
			 1986 14,446 15,023 258,186 
			 1987 15,123 15,666 304,708 
			 1988 16,177 16,867 357,755 
			 1989 17,125 17,825 425,731 
			 1990 18,049 18,300 476,692 
			 1991 18,485 18,857 503,822 
			 1992 18,916 19,393 517,709 
			 1993 19,851 20,561 543,253 
			 1994 21,121 21,954 566,080 
			 1995 22,366 23,177 622,016 
			 1996 23,910 24,734 681,914 
			 1997 25,391 26,334 719,991 
			 1998 26,879 27,702 779,507 
			 1999 28,812 30,959 806,571